Terror module busted, 5 held from TS

Hyderabad: In a coordinated operation on Tuesday, the Central Intelligence Bureau, the Madhya Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), and the state police's Counter Intelligence Cell arrested five people from various locations in Hyderabad who are allegedly connected to the terrorist organisation Hizb-Ut-Tahrir (HuT).

The Madhya Pradesh ATS detained around 10 others for their suspected links to the Hizb-Ut-Tahrir in Bhopal and Chhindwara.

Police identified two of the five arrested in Hyderabad as Mohammed Saleem alias Saurabh Raj Vaidhya, a native of Bhopal who is working as a head of department (HoD) of pharmaceutical biotechnology at a private college, and Abdur Rahman alias Devi Prasad Panda, a Odisha native working as a cloud service engineer in the city. Both are Golconda residents.

Mohammed Abbas Ali alias Baska Venu Kumar, an autorickshaw driver from Hafeez Babanagar, Shaik Junaid, a dentist from Golconda, and Mohammed Hameed, a daily wage earner from Jagathgirigutta, were the others who were arrested.

Another suspect, Mohammed Salman, a daily wage earner from Shamirpet, is absconding, according to officials involved in the investigation. "Two air gun pistols, pellets, jihadi literature, and other incriminating material were seized from Saleem's possession," the investigating officers stated.

Inquiries revealed that Saleem relocated to Hyderabad in the second part of 2022 and began working for an educational institution. The accused was into radicalising activity and attempting to spread the terror outfit’s beliefs and recruit members to their group.

Mohammad Waseem is suspected of being a prominent member of the group. He works for a non-governmental organisation and is the son of a well-known social campaigner for Bhopal gas victims.

The accused were successful in radicalising Ali, Junaid, Hameed and Salman and bringing them into their fold. Further, they would convene at Saleem's house on a regular basis to discuss plans for spreading their beliefs. Saleem and Rahman maintained a low profile at their respective workplaces. The five accused have been shifted to Bhopal for further investigation.

According to sources, the MP ATS police seized Jihadi literature, electronic devices, and other material from the detained persons. Last year, several people were arrested from Bhopal for their alleged links with the banned group Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), and jihadi literature and electronic devices seized from them.

The three-month-long operation has resulted in zeroing on these alleged HuT activists before picking them, sources said. HuT was founded in Jerusalem in 1952 and has its footprints in 50 countries. The organisation was said to be more dangerous than ISIS.